Cheteshwar Pujara retires: A throwback to his Test debut — who’s still active today?

Cheteshwar Pujara’s announcement on Sunday, confirming his retirement from all forms of cricket, brings an era to a close. The 37-year-old batter was the final active cricketer from the Indian XI that featured in his debut Test against Australia at Bengaluru in October 2010. Pujara’s first outing in whites remains etched as a sign of things to come. Promoted to bat at No. 3 in the second innings, he struck a fluent 72 off just 117 balls, showing remarkable poise for a newcomer. His knock helped set up India’s seven-wicket win, with Sachin Tendulkar remaining unbeaten on 53 as the hosts comfortably chased down 207 to secure a 2-0 series sweep.What made things even more interesting was the fact that he got out for just 4 runs in his very first time coming out to bat, at number 5, and his 72 in the 2nd innings was a rather commendable turnaround from the then 22-year-old. In that match, India fielded a side that included Murali Vijay, Virender Sehwag, Rahul Dravid, Tendulkar, Suresh Raina, MS Dhoni, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, Pragyan Ojha and Sreesanth. Over the years, each of them stepped away from the game, leaving Pujara as the lone figure still active at the highest level. With his retirement, the last link to that XI has also been severed.However, among players that were in the squad and did not play, Ishant Sharma and Amit Mishra are yet to announce their retirement. Although they have not been part of the Indian team's set up in recent years, they are yet to call time officially on their careers. The 2010 Test not only marked India’s dominance at home but also highlighted Pujara’s fearless approach. He drove Mitchell Johnson through the covers early in his 2nd innings and attacked Nathan Hauritz with footwork that caught the eye. His composure drew praise, and even then he looked like someone who belonged on the big stage. Murali Vijay, the last of his teammates from that debut match to retire ahead of him, called time on his career in January 2023. Others, including Tendulkar, Dravid and Dhoni, had long since exited the international stage. From that promising beginning in Bengaluru, Pujara went on to feature in 103 Tests, collecting 7,195 runs at an average of 43.60 with 19 hundreds and 35 half-centuries. His role as India’s wall in the longest format was cemented in famous victories abroad, most notably in Australia. With Pujara’s farewell, Indian cricket has bid goodbye to the last active member of that 2010 Bengaluru side, which embodied a generation that carried the team to memorable heights.